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The President's Leadership Failures -- Excerpts from "Hope Is Not A Strategy"

The debt-ceiling impasse of mid-2011 was a classic case of President Obama trying to lead when no one was following. The President finally stalked out of meetings in fits of frustration and/or pique, allowing the leaders of both parties to choose their own approaches and collaborate on a proposed resolution to the debt ceiling issue. Few failures are more devastating to a leader that being unable to gain the support and involvement of critical “followers.”

The following excerpt from HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency describes both the reality of such a situation and the lessons about what true leaders must do.

What To Do When No One Follows Your Leadership?

…“True leaders understand that it is not the position that makes them a leader, but the ability to show people a vision of the future, to help them get there, and to expose and utilize talents and capabilities that the people never even knew they had. In short, you must bring out the best in those around you, and not be afraid to work alongside of them to show your belief in them.Leaders exude their leadership. This cannot be described in words, but people can sense it—or not. They will follow true leaders, and not trust, nor follow the pretenders. Barack Obama has shown an incredible lack of accomplishment in this area. Many have labeled him as a narcissist and that may be part of the problem.”…

Noted author Stephen R. Covey once wrote: “I don’t care how much you know until I know how much you care.” This rule of human interaction is revealing.

…”[Obama’s] real problem is that people can see how much he is faking that he cares. He strains to show empathy and is always looking for the right sound bite, but his expressions and body language betray him. His reliance on Teleprompters for almost every speech showed that he dared not get off script, because if he did people could not relate to him, or even identify with his message. Or worse, they might learn what his real thoughts and policies were (“I just want to spread the wealth around, etc.”)—or that they were so vague that he really had none.Genuine leaders are usually “servant leaders” and they are more concerned with leading their followers to the right places, in the right ways, and proving that constancy of purpose in everything they say and do, and in every decision they make.” …

The leadership failures of this president and his administration are numerous, but many of them are rooted in a few common failures and misconceptions. The greatest one of these is that leadership cannot be “bestowed” on anyone, but an election or by corporate governance. True leadership must be earned, and bestowed upon the leader by the followers, exhibited by their actions in following that lead. When that is not the case, the leader tries to lead, but too few follow that lead, and the ones who do, are doing so for the wrong reasons—usually selfish or “political” reasons.

…”This president is attempting to lead a country that was founded on freedom and the ability for any individual to achieve as much as they can—but he is doing it in a way that is contrary to those ideals. Increasingly, Obama’s “government-knows-best” philosophy has driven more people away from him than it has drawn to follow him. In short, he is making a serious leadership mistake, doing almost the exact opposite of what he led many of his constituents to expect. He is not helping them to reach their potential, and seems less and less interested in doing so as each day passes. “…

…”This brings up another important lesson to keep in mind. People believe in and follow leaders who do not show their frustration, but do show determination and a positive, can-do attitude. True leaders do not whine; they do not blame others for their failures; and they do not make excuses. Barack Obama does all three—and frequently.”…

There are many more lessons like this one, but it is one of the most important lessons to remember. In succeeding parts of this series, more situations and lessons will explain further why Barack Obama has failed to live up to the enormous leadership expectations created by his campaign rhetoric and rousing speeches. And this excerpt describes just one of the 30+ lessons contained in Hope is Not a Strategy! Sign up for continuing updates at www.hopeisnotastrategybook.com

—————-John Mariotti is an internationally known executive and an award-winning author. His newest book, co-authored with D. M. Lukas, Hope is NOT a Strategy: Leadership Lessons from the Obama Presidency will be available in late March 2012 at www.amazon.com .

Mariotti’s 2008 book, The Complexity Crisis was named one of 2008’s Best Business Books. His critically acclaimed 2010 novel, The Chinese Conspiracy, merges an exciting fictional thriller with the reality of America’s risk from Cyber-Attacks. Mariotti does keynote speeches, serves on corporate boards and is a consultant/advisor to companies. He can be reached at www.mariotti.net .

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